The vibe I get from the books is one of getting new DMs and players on the road to adventure as swiftly as possible.
I definitely see your point about DMs needing some kind of higher level content. And I wonder if WotC considered adding one or two higher level adventures, only to decide not...
The Aurora's Whole Realms Catalog equipment entries (p.128-136) in Heroes of Faerûn stands out to me as super useful.
Although the catalog is linked to the Realms regions discussed in the Heroes and the Adventures books, the equipment itself could be from anywhere in any game world.
I really...